


earth and sky connected by a hill

by iori7se (jutsuzuban)



Series: Nanase Sougo AU [1]
Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Goes up to Radiant Glory, Kujou Tenn - Freeform, Nanase Sougo, Nanase Sougo AU, Nanase Tenn - Freeform, Pre-Canon, Riku AND Tenn are nerds ok, SOUGO IS HAPPY THE FIC, Sou's a little bit of a brocon but not very evident, Sougo-centric!, Tenn and Riku are even bigger brocons than in canon, Tenn stays with the family shush, Tenn's also kinda OoC, it's angst fluff AND sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:47:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25124932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jutsuzuban/pseuds/iori7se
Summary: "Nanase Sougo. It's nice to meet you."The fic in which Sougo is the product of a one-night stand and ends up being the big brother to Tenn and Riku.
Relationships: Kujou Ten & Nanase Riku, Kujou Ten & Ousaka Sougo, Nanase Riku & Ousaka Sougo, Ousaka Sougo & Nanase Riku & Kujou Ten
Series: Nanase Sougo AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1820041
Comments: 10
Kudos: 73





	earth and sky connected by a hill

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry in advance for any mistakes! ;;;

A white-haired woman stands in line at a coffee shop. In her arms, she carries a baby, a little boy with white hair like hers with a tinge of purple. He is her pride and joy, but looking at him also makes the mother feel a bit sad. Her baby coos at her from his place on her breast, smiling with open lips and snow-white teeth. She smiles back.

“Miss, it’s your turn.” The woman looks up with a blush of embarrassment as she moves up to the cashier. It’s a red-haired man with kind cherry eyes, and he smiles at her. Her heart skips a beat. 

“I’m so sorry, I spaced out a little there. Can I get an iced caramel coffee? Extra shot of caffeine, please.” “Alright, may I get a name?” “Saito Rin.” The man smiles as he hands her the receipt, and Rin thanks him as she goes to wait for her drink.

Moving and balancing her baby onto her hip, she smiles as one of his small hands reaches out and pats her belly. Laughing, she slips the receipt into her pocket and takes her baby with both hands. “You were just in there yourself some months ago, weren’t you? My beautiful Sougo...It’s hard to believe in just a couple more months it’ll be your birthday.” Sougo grins at her, waving his hands in her face as he starts babbling, the occasional “Mama!” slipping out as he reaches for her face and hair. His mother graces him with another one of her pretty smiles, and Sougo chirps with delight.

“An iced caramel coffee for Saito-san!” It’s the same man who gives Rin her drink, and she smiles at him. Oddly enough, alongside her drink is a chocolate chip cookie, soft and warm to the touch. Rin’s smile softens as she looks at the man, “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it,” he says, patiently holding the items as Rin puts Sougo back onto her hip. He looks at the man with a confused look until he holds out the cookie, in which his face lights up and his hands reach out for the paper bag. Rin smiles as Sougo takes the cookie, holding onto it as his babbling gets a touch louder. 

“Have a good day,” Rin says to the man, who grins back with a wink, a “Will do” on his lips as Rin moves to leave the shop. Later that day when she sets herself and her baby down, Rin finds a name and a phone number written onto the cookie’s paper bag. Rin laughs softly to herself and she feeds Sougo small bits of the cookie. 

_Nanase Atsushi. XXX-XXX-XXXX  
_ _Want to meet up for coffee sometime? Preferably not at my workplace while I’m working._

* * *

“Sou-nii, Sou-nii!” “Riku, don’t run! Ugh, Sougo-nii, tell him to stop!” 

A little 8-year-old boy with lilac-colored hair laughed as he was tackled by a pair of little 6-year-olds, a grinning red-haired boy and a frowning pink-haired boy. Sougo drops his yellow school bag on the floor and gathers up both of his brothers into his arms, lifting them up as much as he could. Sougo laughs as both of the twins shove their faces into his neck and bump their chins against his collarbone.

“I think Riku running is fine,” Sougo says with a smile as he sets them back down. He presses a hand down onto Riku’s head, mussing up the red strands. “However, he _had_ just come back from the hospital yesterday, so he must be given a punishment.” Tenn nods with a serious face marred with a pout as Riku whines. Sougo pats his littlest brother’s head as he steps around the twins. 

“Come on, as punishment you have to sit at the table while Tenn helps me cook dinner for Mama and Dad.” Riku deflates as Tenn perks up, bouncing ahead of the two to get into the kitchen--and leave Sougo to talk to his twin.

“Sou-nii, is it really that bad for me to run?”

“It is if you’re still healing.” Sougo stops walking, holding Riku in place as he pats the redhead’s chest. “Your lungs aren’t the same as Tenn and mine’s, they need extra care. However--” Riku’s kicked-puppy looks lightens into a curious one, and Sougo is grateful “--just because they need extra care, doesn’t mean you have to sit around all day. You just have to train your body...like all those superheroes you like! They train to learn their powers, right?” Riku nods enthusiastically at the mention of the heroes he loves so much, but then his small shoulders slump as his head dips, and Sougo frowns as he gets on one knee to look at his brother better.

“But my sickness isn’t a superpower...it doesn’t help me at all.” Riku’s eyes get teary, and Sougo frowns at the upset look. He doesn’t like it when his brothers get sad.

“Riku, look at me please?” The boy does, and Sougo’s chest goes tight at the look. “It’s true your lungs aren’t the best, but are you going to let it stop you?” His brother shakes his head, and Sougo smiles. “Good! Later, how about we go for a couple of walks around the living room as exercise? Start small so then when we’re older, you can run for longer times!” 

“Promise?”

“I promise, Riku. Trust in your big brother, okay?” Sougo holds out his pinkie finger, and Riku’s watery red eyes flick up to look into his brother’s strong amethyst eyes. They’re hard with a promise sharpening the edges, and Riku nods as he wraps Sougo’s finger around his.  
  


“Okay!” 

Riku’s bright eyes don't dim, not even when Tenn teases Riku that he’s sitting at the temporary “table of shame.” He laughs when Sougo threatens Tenn that he’ll join his twin at the table, making Tenn snap his mouth shut and passively hand Sougo the eggs.

* * *

“It’s been a week.” 

Sougo looks towards Tenn, the 7-year-old’s cute face marred by an angry scowl as he looks out the window. The 10-year-old felt the same, but he wouldn’t make a face with Tenn around; he was going to be a good big brother and be someone dependable.

“It was pretty bad. These things just take a lot of time, right?” Even though the Nanases had taken cautionary measures and tried to keep Riku safe (and Sougo and Tenn ‘training’ with Riku by doing very mild exercise without their parents knowing), the littlest Nanase had gotten a very bad attack and was now in the hospital. Tenn’s hand clenched into a fist from where it laid on his thigh. 

“It’s almost our birthday! He should come back for our birthday!” His small hand shook as he pressed his fist down. Concern written all over his face, Sougo walked over to his brother’s side, placing a gentle hand on Tenn’s shoulder.

“Say he does come back for your birthday. Wouldn’t you want to give him a big surprise?” Tenn looks up at Sougo skeptically, but the older boy smiles. “Riku wouldn’t want you to cry and be mad, right? He’d want you to be happy.” Sougo gently takes Tenn’s face into his hands, and steps closer to comfort Tenn. “Riku would definitely want his twin to be happy when he comes back, and not cry, right? Why don’t you talk it out with your big brother so you won’t have any tears left for Riku to see?”

Tenn’s face twists as he bites on his bottom lip, and Sougo is thankful when he rushes forward to push his face into the older boy’s chest. Sougo gently takes Tenn into his arms, legs shaking with the extra weight, but Tenn’s legs are already wrapped around his thighs, so Sougo slowly turns around and sits on the wood chair his baby brother had dragged from the kitchen to the window. 

“It was so scary,” the boy whispers. “Riku just fell out of his seat when he started coughing...It felt like I couldn’t do anything.” Tenn’s arms wrapped around his brother’s chest and squeezed tight, but Sougo didn’t move to push him away. Instead, he wrapped his own arms around Tenn and squeezed the younger boy back. 

“It was scary, wasn’t it? But you were so brave, Tenn. You got Mama, Papa and I, right? You got Riku help.”

Tenn starts to cry, and his mouth moves to make words--more excuses on how awful of a brother he was--but all Sougo does is press his lips to Tenn’s head. The older boy whispers into his little brother’s hair about what a brave and caring brother he was, how happy Riku will be from being able to come back home, how Tenn will be the first person Riku will hug when he comes in through the door.

(Riku comes back on the twins’ birthday to a special pancake dinner made by Tenn with Sougo helping him. Sougo is right when he said Riku would hug Tenn first, but he doesn’t expect it when Tenn pulls on his sleeves to drag him into the hug as well. Their stressed and work-worn parents laugh and coo at them, worry lines softening as the brothers hug and smile at each other.)

* * *

They are home alone when the twins are 12 and Sougo 14 when the latter finds himself looking up from the pot he was stirring soup in. Next to him is Tenn, cutting up spring onions with his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth. Past Tenn’s head was Riku at the dinner table, studying for a maths test he had to skip that day for a check-up with his doctor. His tongue too stuck out from between his lips, and Sougo smiled as a giggle slipped past his own lips.

“Sougo-nii?” Tenn inquires, causing Riku to look up from his book at his twin’s voice. Sougo startled, the ladle slipping from his grasp to hit the bottom of the pot. Luckily the ladle was bigger than the pot and so didn’t slip in, but the _bang_ of the ladle hitting the metal pot caused Tenn to make a noise and Riku to get up from his chair.

“Sou-nii, are you okay?” Riku asks worriedly, body leaning forward onto the table. Tenn himself looks ready to dart for the first aid kit in the case Sougo hurt himself, and the thought and sight of his little brothers worrying for him makes Sougo’s stomach churn happily, even as he scolds himself in his head for making his precious brothers worry. 

“Ah, I’m fine. It just,” his lavender eyes soften and the smile appears again on his lips even as he uses them, “It just felt right.”

“To laugh?” Tenn’s eyebrows start to knit together, and Sougo laughs.

“To love. There’s no one like my little brothers, right?”

Riku grins, tilting his chin up proudly. “And there’s no one like our Sou-nii!”

Tenn nods as Sougo nervously laughs. “Sougo-nii is very cute after all.”

“Eh- me?” Sougo looks at the white-haired twin in shock. “No, you two are-”

“Tenn-nii’s right!” Riku cuts in, interrupting Sougo’s rebuttal. “Sou-nii’s hair is really soft! And, and it frames your eyes so nicely! It’s like seeing purple hydrangeas in the late May snow!” Tenn and Sougo both look at him, the former with a sly questioning look and the latter with wide eyes and red cheeks. 

“Ah, Riku, that’s really sweet of you,” Sougo says, flustered as he turned the stove off as the soup started bubbling. Riku beamed, but that quickly fell off his face when Tenn started to approach him, humming conspiratorially. 

“That doesn’t sound like you, Riku. Tell me, are you reading those romance novels I saw hidden away in your bookshelf?”

“T-Tenn-nii! No way! Why are you looking through my room!?”

“I just thought I’d be considerate and clean my precious twin’s room. I didn’t mean to stumble upon the novels while dusting.”

“Ah ah ah! Shut up!” Riku whined, pushing his twin away lightly on the shoulder. Tenn pouted as he crossed his arms, and Sougo laughed at his little brothers’ antics.

Yes, this was a moment to love.

* * *

“I can’t believe you’re sick.” Sougo turns his head (no matter how it ached he was always going to turn his head) to look at Riku, who was sitting on the floor and childishly peeking over Sougo’s bed to look at him with large red eyes. _Cute._

“Well, I have been doing my best to not get sick so it had no chance of spreading to you.” Sougo sighs as the pounding of his head starts to lessen. “Guess I’ve failed. Why are you here, Riku? If I develop a cough it’ll spread.”

Riku’s eyes crinkle in the way they do when he smiles. “I’m wearing a mask!” he says, standing up from the floor to prove he was. 

Sougo hums, “It could still spread.”

“It won’t. You worry too much, Sou-nii.”

“And that’s the reason he’s sick.” The door opened to reveal Tenn, wearing a face mask and balancing a small tray in one hand. The strong smell of ginger invaded Sougo’s nose (how did he just notice how stuffy it was?), so he guessed it was rice porridge. “You’d think a 16-year-old would understand that when they’re sick, they should stay in bed. Not try to clean the house and stress their bodies out.”

“I thought I’d cheer up Mom and Dad by letting them come back to a clean home and a nice dinner.” _They deserve it_ doesn’t leave Sougo’s thoughts, but both of the twins’ lips twitching at the corners told the older boy they knew what they meant. 

“Sou-nii works too much.” “He does, doesn’t he?” Both twins looked at Sougo, who frowned confusedly at them, and they grinned as they spoke in unison, “He’s too nice for his own good.”

Sougo groaned a little. “When the two of you talk in unison, nothing good happens.”

“For you, maybe, but not this time. This time”--Tenn sets the tray of food at Sougo’s desk nearby--”you will just sit back, relax, and eat.” He guided Sougo into sitting up, effortlessly puffing up and rearranging the pillows behind Sougo the same way he’d do for Riku when he was instructed to stay in bed. Riku hands Tenn the tray, who then places it down gently onto Sougo’s lap; rice porridge with some chicken bits and the smell of ginger. “It’s the winter season, and I don’t need you _and_ Riku sick at the same time.”

Riku turns his head to look at his twin, startled, and immediately starts whining about how he hasn’t gotten sick in a while. Tenn fakes a stern expression, telling Riku how easily he could get sick if he just went outside without a scarf or proper jacket. Sougo laughs and then cuts in between the twins arguing, asking if they would mind entertaining him since reading and television sounded like too much for his mild headache.

“Dinner and a show? Sougo-nii’s asking for a lot from his little brothers,” Tenn teases, rose-pink eyes sparkling with mirth. 

“He does a lot for us too, Tenn-nii! It’d only be fair.” Riku bounces over to stand at the end of Sougo’s bed, pulling down his face mask to let it sit under his chin. “We can sing! Like how you two would when I had to stay in bed after an attack or while I’m sick.”

“I suppose we could.” Tenn walks over to stand next to Riku, pulling down his own mask. “What song shall we sing?”

(Looking back now with a smile, that was probably one of the many moments that made Tenn want to be an idol.)

* * *

“I want to be an idol.” Tenn is 15 and Riku is at the hospital with their parents for his monthly check-up. Sougo is 17 and at home with Tenn, and the former sets down the last plate of lunch as the pair wait for the rest of their family to come back home.

“Really now?” Sougo says with mild surprise. “I thought you’d go into business or become a doctor. Ah, but you’re also really good at maths.”

Tenn makes a face. “I just want to earn high marks to get out of school faster and make my idol life easier.” 

Sougo hums thoughtfully. “You do sing beautifully and can dance very well...Wait”--Sougo narrows his eyes at his brother--”is that what you’re doing when you come back home late? Practicing?”

“At the park where people can see me! Sougo-nii, it’s not that bad. I come home before it gets dark anyway! Besides,” Tenn lowers himself into a seat, “Riku knew where I was all those times.”

“You told Riku? He didn’t tell me that, and I would’ve known he was hiding something if you told him to.” Sougo lowers himself into his seat in front of Tenn, and the boy grins.

“Riku can hide some secrets. He’s my twin and your brother after all.” Tenn doesn’t elaborate even as Sougo asked him, incredulous and confused at what Riku being related to him had to do with hiding secrets. The younger white-haired boy simply grinned.

Later, when their parents and Riku came back home after the check-up and they sat down together to eat, Tenn re-announces his future career goal. Their parents, despite having a rocky relationship with the entertainment industry, are happy and supportive. Riku is ecstatic and thrilled to support his twin, stating how he’d buy all of Tenn’s albums. Sougo too is ecstatic, despite all his griping from earlier. He’s truly happy one of his little brothers has a future they want (and will get. Tenn is nothing but ambitious and Sougo is absolutely ready to see his brother’s face in the music stores he loves to frequent.)

Tenn laid out his plans, and one step of his plan is odd but sensible.

“I don’t want to bring unnecessary attention and stress to our family--” he takes a small pause to look at Riku “--so I’m thinking I have a stage name.”

“Like Re:vale?” Their father’s eyebrow raises. “Just ‘Tenn’ would work then, or ‘Heaven’ if that’s what you want.”

Tenn shakes his head. “Making my stage name ‘Heaven’ makes me sound conceited. I was just thinking of a fake surname to use.”

“Oooh, I think that’d be cool.” Riku’s eyes sparkle as he leans in closer to his twin. “Have you thought up of a name yet?”

“I actually have.” Tenn drums his fingers on the table as he uses his other hand to trace random patterns and characters onto the surface. Sougo recognizes the absentminded lines of the character for nine. “I took notice of the fact Sougo-nii’s name had the character for five in it, and our family name has seven. The next number following this pattern would be the number nine...I searched up some surnames that would be inconspicuous with that specific kanji, and I stumbled upon one- Kujo.”

The silence that descended over the table was palpable. Tenn’s eyes darted to look at all of their faces, and Riku’s was the one that broke. He hunched over the table and started laughing, shoulder shaking desperately to keep his volume down. Both their parents’ faces cracked into smiles, their mother laughing softly into her palm. Tenn reeled back in shock at the sudden drop of tension, and Sougo followed his mother in gentle laughter.

“I think it’s a good thing you’re not pursuing a career in comedy, Tenn.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? Sougo-nii!”

* * *

Their parents were both working late shifts. It was winter, and Riku was working on homework at the dinner table. Sougo was sitting next to him, helping him with the more difficult questions. Occasionally, he’d look up towards the door, and check the clock nearby. Pale white fingers tapped against the screen of a phone, the nails occasionally striking the glass.

“Sou-nii, he’s fine,” Riku says absentmindedly, his pencil continuing to scratch lines onto his paper, but Sougo’s tense shoulders slacken and his nail stop hitting the glass, which Riku is grateful for.

“I’m worried. He said he was meeting his groupmates at 8, and it’s already 10.” Sougo’s fingers curl into the fabric of his pants. “He did say they would be older than him…”

“We know his location, and Tenn-nii is smart. I’m sure he can avoid a fight.” Riku smiles gently at Sougo. “You’re worrying too much. After all, didn’t you insist on teaching Tenn-nii self-defense in the weeks leading up to this meeting?” Sougo’s lips curve into a frown, nearly forming into a pout (Riku’s smile grew a bit wider). 

“It was just in case he--” Sougo pauses, tilting his head toward the front entrance. Riku focuses on the door, straining his ears. There were voices: two deep male voices, and Tenn’s. Sougo immediately gets up and rushes to the door, Riku a beat behind him.

Opening the door, Tenn stood outside with his hands midair, gesturing wildly. He froze once the door opened and saw Sougo’s stern face. Sougo crossed his arms and cocked his hip, staring hard at Tenn, who was sheepishly wringing his hands together.

“Ah, Sougo-nii. I’m back?”

“Welcome back,” Sougo says, unimpressed. “Why haven’t you answered any of my texts or called me?”

“My phone died,” Tenn squeaks, lowering his chin. “I’m sorry, I didn’t have a charger. And even if I did, I was at the park.” Sougo stares at his little brother for a little longer (Riku silently giggles behind him), and sighs, letting his shoulders fall. He couldn’t stay mad at Tenn for long if he was staring at him like that now, could he?

“It’s fine, Tenn. You’re back home already.” Sougo pats Tenn’s head, the way he knows Tenn likes (Tenn smiles under the affection). Sensing his brother’s anger disappear, Riku bounces around Sougo to stand next to him.

“You two must be Tenn-nii’s idol groupmates! I’m his twin, Nanase Riku!”

“Nanase? Ah, the kid did state something about having a stage name, huh.” A silver-haired boy scratches his neck. “I’m Yaotome Gaku.”

“Hello! I’m Tsunashi Ryunosuke.” A brown-haired, golden-eyed man smiles. Both Sougo and Riku’s cheek flush, Sougo’s more so, and Tenn snickers into his hand.

“Ah, I’ve forgotten my manners. I’m so sorry you had to see that,” he says while hastily getting into a bow, cheeks flushed red. Tenn clicks his tongue and taps Sougo’s shoulder.

“You don’t have to bow to them, Sougo-nii. At least not to Gaku.”

“Hah!? You have something to say, brat?”

Tsunashi immediately gets in between them, and Riku also looks concerned, but a spark of mirth is in his eyes. Sougo smiles and laughs, then remembers it’s winter and the cold air was bad for Riku when he saw his breath come out.

“I’d hate to interrupt”--his voice cuts in like a knife between the arguing boys--”but it’s rather cold out and I don’t want any of us to catch something.” His lavender eyes look at everyone, but linger on Riku the longest. The redhead gets the look and goes back inside. Sougo moves to the side and holds the door open for the new idols to come in.

“I don’t think you’ve introduced yourself to us.” Sougo looks up at Tsunashi (he was very tall…), staring into his sparkling eyes. Sougo’s cheeks start feeling hot again, so he clears his throat. Yaotome is staring at Sougo from behind Tsunashi, Tenn having gone deeper into the house with his twin. Sougo smiles at the two of them shyly.

“Nanase Sougo. It’s nice to meet you, Tsunashi-san, Yaotome-san.”

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Ainana/i7 Day!!! This is my present to Banri and the boys~ lol
> 
> And happy early birthday to the twins! <3 <3 <3
> 
> I can't say I'm entirely responsible for this AU idea. I saw some neat fanart of "Nanase Triplets" on Twitter! It was super cute and I was super inspired. My Twit is @iori7se if you want to chat!!!
> 
> This is the first installment of this series. I have lots of ideas for this AU! Ah, but I have another AU too that hasn't been published yet, and my Kaiketsu fic...and some other WIPs ahaha. Wish me luck!


End file.
